Although the highway is continuous, it is generally considered to be divided into five sections, each with its own nickname and characteristics such as a differing number of lanes and speed limits:

Northern Coastal Highway (Rosh Hanikra–Haifa). This section passes through the Krayot, Acre and Nahariya in Northern Israel. The southern third of the highway bisects the densely populated Krayot area and frequently experienced heavy traffic congestion until a bypass freeway, Highway 22, was constructed in the early 2010s several kilometers to the east of Highway 4.

Old Haifa–Tel Aviv Highway (Haifa–Ra'anana). Commonly referred to in Israel as The Old Highway (Hebrew: "הכביש הישן"‎) while Highway 2 is sometimes called The New Highway. This section was originally built by the British to allow Jewish traffic from Tel-Aviv to Haifa to bypass the Arab towns of Qalqilyah and Tulkarm during the 1936–39 Arab revolt, making it the first bypass road in the country.

Geha Highway, or First President Road (Ra'anana–Azor). This functions as an important arterial road in the eastern portion of the Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area.

The Tel Aviv–Ashdod and Geha sections are freeways. The rest of the highway consists of multiple lanes in each direction except between Rosh HaNikra and Nahariya and between Tirat Carmel just south of Haifa and Fureidis, which have a single lane of traffic in each direction. While there have been multiple proposals to widen the Haifa-Fureidis section, these have so far been blocked due to opposition from nearby residents who would like the highway in the area to retain its current rural character.